Lost
by GalaxyPegasus14
Summary: Madoka keeps going out with any guy who asks her. Gingka keeps trying to convince her to think more. Every new boyfriend she gets drives another needle into his heart. When Madoka's father arrives and bans all boys from coming near her, can Gingka win the respect he needs to date Madoka? GinMado, one-shot.


**This is an idea that has been brewing in my mind for a long time. So, here it is!**

Madoka was walking down the streets, arm-in-arm with a tall young man who was around seventeen years of age. The two were talking and laughing together, which only served to shove the thin needle deeper and deeper into the heart of the redhead watching from a nearby window.

Gingka Hagane might be the strongest blader in the world, seemingly undefeatable in any battle, but he knew that this was a battle he was constantly losing. He loved the brunette known as Madoka Amano, that was true, but he couldn't seem to protect her from all of the heartache she kept forcing on herself. The guy she was currently with was the most popular in their school, the star of the football team, and every girl in the school claimed that she would give anything to be where Madoka was right now.

The turquoise-eyed brunette was blind to what the Pegasus wielder had seen over and over again. She had seemingly already forgotten about the fact that her last boyfriend, her sixth of the school year, had only dumped her three days ago after he saw a girl who was, in his opinion, prettier than Madoka. Gingka felt helpless underneath the continuous onslaught of Madoka's new boyfriends, her current one being the seventh in as many months.

Gingka was tired of hearing, nightly, about the tiny little details of each of Madoka's boyfriends, followed closely by her daydreaming plans for the future and her statement that 'this had to be the right one!'

Every month, it all ended the same way, with Madoka fleeing to the B-Pit in tears after a break-up, and Gingka resisting the urge to say 'I told you so.' Every time she came up to him after school, beaming and talking about one boy or another who had asked her out, it drove yet another needle into Gingka's heart, as he tried to warn her about things that he had seen in that particular guy, things that she would always put down, claiming that it would be different with her than with the last girlfriend that that particular guy had had only two days before.

"They're all idiots." Gingka growled under his breath, watching as the two turned the corner. Lately, he was only counting the seconds until he would arrive at the B-Pit to ask about Pegasus's repairs, only to find Madoka again in tears over another breakup. He wasn't even able to completely focus on a battle anymore because his thoughts were so distracted. Kenta and the others were getting worried, but Madoka didn't seem to notice the change in Gingka. She was constantly occupied, and hadn't even come down to the Bey Park lately.

Gingka sighed and got up from his seat, leaving the small café he had been sitting in and trailing Madoka and her boyfriend as they walked. His eyes narrowed as he soon spotted some of the other members of the football team also trailing the two.

"_What are they up to?_" Gingka wondered, quickening his pace in a sudden effort to catch up to Madoka, a sickening feeling settling in his stomach as he eyed the muscular teens walking towards the couple, who were seemingly oblivious, but Gingka could tell that the older teen arm-in-arm with Madoka knew that his friends were there. Each of the football team members had now been joined by their own girlfriends, and they had all gathered into a group, blocking Madoka from Gingka's view.

Suddenly, a few frightened and startled screams broke out from the female members of the group. Gingka was sure that he had heard Madoka's scream among them. He plunged into the group, trying to protect her and the other girls, but was repeatedly shoved back.

"Get away from my daughter, all of you!" A booming voice said suddenly, and a couple of the teens went flying as they were punched by an older man.

"Aww, come on! We were just having a little fun!" One of the teens spoke up.

"Dad!" Madoka said, running and hugging the turquoise-eyed adult towering over the group.

"You're grounded! I expected to come back and find you being responsible with your relationships, and then I come back to this! You are not allowed to talk to or be around anyone except for your girlfriends, got it?" Mr. Amano said.

Tears filled Madoka's eyes. "But, Dad…"

"No buts." Mr. Amano said sternly as he turned to the group of teens. "I never want to see any of you boys around my daughter again, you got that?"

"But dad, they're not all bad! Gingka was-" Madoka said, but her father cut her off, turning to Gingka as he spoke.

"Those of you that are famous, especially. Don't come near her." he growled.

"Yes sir." Gingka said. "Madoka, give Pegasus to Hikaru when the repairs are done. She can give it to me."

"O-Okay. Goodbye, Gingka." Madoka said, standing next to her father.

Gingka cast one last glance at the brunette, then turned and quietly walked away. The rest of the boys had already dispersed, a few still nearby, glaring threats at Mr. Amano as he escorted Madoka to his car and drove her home.

The next day, Gingka got off the bus, only to run right into someone.

"Oh! I'm- Madoka?" Gingka quickly helped the brunette up, then spotted her father glaring at him out of the corner of his eye.

"Sorry." he said, quickly walking in the opposite direction.

"Hey Gingka." Hikaru greeted at lunch. "Here's Pegasus. What happened with you and Madoka?"

"Thanks Hikaru." Gingka said, taking his bey from the bluenette as she sat down. "Madoka got grounded with her dad after he caught her with the entire football team yesterday. I don't know what they were doing, but the girls were screaming. I went in to try rescuing her, but her dad showed up and now he won't let any boys near her. So, I told her to have you pass Pegasus along to me."

"Ouch. Well, that explains why she called me in tears last night. She usually talks to you, doesn't she?"

"Yeah." Gingka replied as Kyoya joined them.

"Hey Gingka, you up for a battle after school?" he challenged.

"Not really." Gingka replied, poking absentmindedly at his food.

"What, trouble with Madoka again?"

"No, well, sort of. It's all fine though." Gingka replied vaguely.

Kyoya raised an eyebrow and looked at Hikaru.

"_I'll tell you later_." she mouthed.

Kyoya nodded. "Alright. Hey, Kenta wanted us all at his place for a Friday night movie night tonight. Think you could tell Madoka?"

"No, she's grounded and her dad will pound any guy who gets near her." Gingka replied.

"So that's what's going on." Kyoya muttered. "Well, it starts at six. Can you come?"

"If I don't have too much homework." Gingka replied.

"Oh, come on! Your classes are way easier than mine!" Kyoya exclaimed.

"Guess so." Gingka muttered.

Kyoya sighed and gave up trying to get any further conversation out of the redhead.

The group went on in the same fashion for a month, Madoka being dropped off and picked up from school by her dad every morning and afternoon, Gingka and the others carefully avoiding her. Hikaru helped out by staying by her side and texting the boys when they approached an area, giving them the heads-up to clear out. Gingka was determined to obey Mr. Amano, to perhaps prove to Madoka's father that he was responsible, and not one who just expected to get what he wanted when he wanted it because he was famous. He wanted to prove that he could be -and was- mature.

Hikaru gave him daily updates about how Madoka was doing. Every once in a while, he would sit down by the river where they had met and think about what to do. Naturally, her father would probably turn him away from the B-Pit if he tried to go and explain himself. Hikaru had already told him that Madoka had tried explaining things anyway. It was all just one big, annoying puzzle, and Gingka had never been one for strategizing. Of course, he could send his dad to talk to Mr. Amano, but Ryo was heavily occupied with planning tournaments for the upcoming summer months, and sending him might make Gingka look like he couldn't handle it himself.

"Guess I'm on my own on this one, huh Pegasus?" he asked, holding up the silver and blue bey and smiling. School had let out early that day, and he had been laying on the grass next to the river for the past couple of hours. Oddly enough, as he thought about it, he hadn't seen Mr. Amano come to pick Madoka up from school. Usually, their silver car would have passed him as he walked to his home, but it hadn't today. Gingka sat up and looked behind him at the cars passing by, suddenly recognizing Mr. Amano as he drove by.

"_But that means that he is headed to pick Madoka up at the usual time, doesn't it_?" Gingka thought, suddenly panicking. "_And if he's headed over there now, that means that Madoka didn't tell him that school let out early, and if he's going to get her, then she isn't home yet! That means that she's off doing something that she isn't supposed to!_"

In seconds, Gingka found himself tearing down the street towards the school in a panic, hoping that nothing had happened to Madoka. He paused for a second to catch his breath, suddenly thinking that she might just be at Hikaru's house. A quick text message to Hikaru now would save him a ton of worry if Madoka were there, and Mr. Amano might jut be going to pick Madoka up there. After all, Hikaru's apartment was right next to the school. However, the bluenette's confused reply sent the worried redhead into a frenzy of looking for the brunette, as Madoka was not at Hikaru's house.

"Hey, let go of me! I said I don't want to go!"

Gingka skidded to a stop next to an alley, his heart pounding.

"Madoka…" he whispered, running down the alley.

By that time, Mr. Amano had figured out that school had let out early, and was also looking for his daughter. He had his phone out, glad that he had secretly put a tracker on Madoka's phone so that he could find her. Once he was locked on to her location, the older brunette took off from the school parking lot.

"Let me go!" were the first words that Mr. Amano heard as he parked on the curb and got out of his car.

"Leave her alone!" Gingka yelled, grabbing the arm of the older teen who had Madoka's arm.

The blonde boy half-turned.

"Trying to be the hero again, eh Hagane? You don't need to, we were just messing around."

"You mean that you were just messing around after she told you to stop." Gingka growled as the older teen twisted his arm free and turned fully, releasing the frightened Madoka.

"Oh, no, that wasn't it, right Madoka? We were just going to see a movie at my place." he smirked.

"Translation: You were going to do something to her that she didn't want." Gingka replied, not knowing that Mr. Amano had hidden himself around the corner and was watching them. "She told you that she didn't want to, she told you to let go of her, but you didn't. You don't even care what she thinks, do you?"

"Of course I do. We-" Gingka cut the older teen off.

"You don't! You even know that she's grounded, yet you aren't listening to her or her father! He told all of us to stay away from her, yet now I hear her calling out and you have her cornered back here!" Gingka's eyes were blazing by now as he continued yelling.

"You don't respect her or her father! A guy like you doesn't deserve to be around a girl like her, or any girl, for that matter!" almost without knowing it, Gingka was shouting to the world -and Mr. Amano- what he had been thinking about lately.

"If you want to be allowed to be around her, then you need to seriously man up! Madoka's beautiful and intelligent, she knows what she's doing most of the time, and she said to leave her alone, but you didn't! Now get away from her!" Gingka had now managed to maneuver himself between Madoka and the blonde teen.

"Or what?" the blonde threatened.

Gingka raised his launcher. "I'll make you and call her dad." he growled, starting to glow bright blue.

"Gingka…" Madoka whispered.

The blonde teen growled. "Fine." he said, turning and running off.

Gingka lowered his launcher and watched the other teen's retreat.

"Gingka… Thank you." Madoka said.

"You're welcome. Now come on, I'm getting you out of this alley and then calling Hikaru to walk you home." Gingka said, starting off down the alley.

"That won't be necessary." Mr. Amano said suddenly, stepping out of hiding.

"Dad!" Madoka exclaimed nervously as Gingka tensed.

"I saw everything, Madoka. You disobeyed me." Mr. Amano said disapprovingly.

"I-I'm sorry Dad…" Madoka muttered, looking at her feet in shame.

"And you." Mr. Amano turned his attention to Gingka, who gulped and looked him in the eye.

"We need to talk. Come to the B-Pit at closing time."

"Yes sir." Gingka replied, fighting to remain calm.

The turquoise gaze rested on the nervous redhead for a few more seconds before Mr. Amano put an arm around Madoka's shoulders and gently steered her away towards the car.

Gingka followed, heading out of the alley and for home.

"Something happen at school today?" Ryo asked from the couch as his son entered. "You're later than usual."

"Not at school." Gingka replied, still nervous about going to the B-Pit and talking to Madoka's father.

"Something involving the situation with Madoka?" Ryo guessed.

"How did you?…" Gingka trailed off.

Ryo laughed. "Hikaru's been telling me about it. I already know everything you've told her."

"Oh…" Gingka muttered.

"Why don't you come sit down and tell me about it?" Ryo said, patting the couch next to him.

Gingka sat down, wondering where to start.

"Now, what's going on and why were you late if it involves Madoka?" Ryo asked.

"Well, I was sitting by the river, and I saw Mr. Amano drive by in his car, headed towards the school." Gingka began. Over the next few minutes, he told his dad the whole story.

"And now he wants me to come to the B-Pit right at closing time so we can talk, and I don't know what to do." Gingka finished.

Ryo sat quietly for a moment, his eyebrows furrowed in concentration.

"Well, you should go, obviously. Show up exactly on time, maybe even a couple of minutes early to ensure that you aren't late. You did the right thing in defending her from that other boy, that's for sure. If he said he saw everything, then he clearly saw that, and that's probably what he wants to talk to you about. As far as I can tell, he sounds like he might be considering allowing Madoka to be around you, since your actions today have shown him that you really care about her, and respect her."

"But I'm so nervous! What if he's mad at me for getting near her and not coming to him?" Gingka asked.

"That is highly unlikely. If you had gone to get him, you two may have been to late to stop that other teen, and things could have turned out worse in the end. Trust me, he's going to probably ask you why you defended Madoka, and he's probably going to ask for your side of any story that you were involved in. I guarantee that he's already heard Madoka's side of everything." Ryo said. "You should probably go get a shower, make sure that your clothes are clean and neat, and then go. If you show up messy, you might not make a good impression. You have to impress Mr. Amano if you want him to let you be around his daughter."

Gingka smiled. "Thanks dad. I'll go do that." he hugged the older Hagane, then turned and ran upstairs.

Less than an hour later, Gingka found himself striding down the street towards the B-Pit, his blazing red hair still slightly damp, his long scarf wrapped comfortably and loosely around his shoulders rather than its usual spot around his neck. His golden-brown eyes were filled with fiery determination, his heart pounding in nervousness and excitement, hands clenched into fists and freshly-trimmed fingernails digging into the brown fabric of his gloves. The Pegasus wielder paused outside the door of the B-Pit, considering turning back for a second before forcing himself to push open the door and step inside.

A customer slipped past Gingka as Mr. Amano removed his apron and hung it on a hook behind the counter, casting his gaze over the redhead out of the corner of his eye.

"Just head downstairs and have a seat on the couch. I'll be down there once I lock up." he said, grabbing a set of keys out of a drawer.

Gingka gulped and nodded, then descended the stairs down into the familiar workshop. A half-repaired bey was laying on Madoka's desk, awaiting the brunette to return and continue. Gingka guessed that Madoka must be in her room upstairs after what had happened earlier.

Her room was exactly where Madoka was, laying on her bed and absentmindedly playing with a few spare bey parts. She felt nervous for Gingka, knowing as she glanced at the clock that his interview with her father was about to begin. She had already, as Ryo had guessed, given her side of the story, adding, as she did, that she should have listened to his advice. Her father knew her side of the story, now it only remained for him to know Gingka's.

"You seem to know what you're doing around girls, young man." Mr. Amano said as he seated himself across from Gingka, who was fighting to maintain his eye contact.

"Yes sir." the redhead replied.

"I assume from Madoka's story that you have not been near her since I told you to stay away?"

"No sir, the only time we have been near each other was that morning when I accidentally ran into her while getting off the bus." Gingka said calmly, trying not to become fascinated with the coffee table.

"And then today." Mr. Amano said.

"Yes sir."

"What is your side of the story?"

Gingka thought for a moment, considering where to start.

"Well, I was laying on the grass by the river after school when I saw you drive by on your way to the school. We had let out early, so I knew that Madoka must not have told you that school had let out, or that she was at Hikaru's. I texted Hikaru, but she said that Madoka wasn't at her house, so I knew that she had to be somewhere else, and probably doing something she wasn't supposed to. So, I went looking for her. I heard her calling out from that alley, and ran down there to help."

"And then I saw the rest." Mr. Amano interrupted.

"Yes sir."

"Your actions have struck me as different than that other boy's. You seem to have a respect for girls in general."

"Yes sir. No girl should be treated like that guy was treating Madoka." Gingka said, excitement rising in the hope that he had proved himself to Mr. Amano.

"How long have you known Madoka?"

Gingka thought for a moment. "Almost four years, I think."

"And how did you meet? In school? At a tournament?"

"No sir, I was laying on the grass by the river with another friend and she sort of popped up out of nowhere and startled me."

"I see. And how has the relationship been between you two since then?"

Gingka looked confused.

"Meaning, have you ever thought of her as your girlfriend, or as just a friend." Mr. Amano continued.

"Oh. As a friend, but recently, one I would be honored to be allowed to call my girlfriend." Gingka replied, choosing his words carefully.

"And you have never touched her in an… inappropriate way?"

Gingka flushed beet red in embarrassment. "No sir." he said quickly.

"I see. Madoka!"

"Yes, dad?" Madoka's voice came from her room.

"Come here please."

"Coming."

A few minutes later, Madoka stepped cautiously down the stairs, a few tear stains on her face, her eyes wide in nervousness. Gingka looked at her sympathetically.

"Come sit down, Madoka." Mr. Amano said.

The brunette quickly pulled her chair over from her desk and sat down, looking nervously from her father to Gingka and back.

"Do you know why I told you to stay away from all of those boys?" Mr. Amano asked.

"To protect me, right?" Madoka said.

"Yes, but it was to protect you from the heartbreak that they can cause."

Half of Gingka's heart sank as he heard those words. The other half, however, rose as it agreed with Mr. Amano.

"I didn't want you getting hurt by them, didn't want you to just give yourself away to a boy who wouldn't treat you the right way. That's why I tried to keep you away from them. I didn't intend on keeping you away from them permanently, just until I could analyze a few of them to determine whether or not I could feel safe in allowing you to be around them. Do you understand?"

"Yes, father." Madoka said, sounding like she was about to start crying.

"_He's going to put even stricter rules in place now, since I disobeyed him earlier._" was the thought on her mind as she waited for her dad to continue speaking.

"Come here." Mr. Amano said, pulling his daughter close as she began sobbing. He stroked her hair gently, rocking back and forth slightly with her in his arms.

Gingka smiled slightly at the sight, a motion that did not go unnoticed by Mr. Amano's sharp eyes.

"And you." Mr. Amano looked at Gingka. "Do you understand why I told you to stay away from her in the first place?"

"Yes sir, it was the same reason I was trying to keep her away from the others myself. I just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time." Gingka replied.

Mr. Amano raised an eyebrow. "You were trying to keep them away from her?" He asked, sounding suspicious.

"Yes sir." Gingka replied, getting nervous again. "I had seen too many of her breakups. She always came to me after one of them."

"Breakups?" Mr. Amano turned his attention back to Madoka, who suddenly gained an extreme interest in her boots.

"Madoka, how many guys did you go out with?" he asked.

Madoka made no reply, looking at Gingka with her sad turquoise eyes.

"I lost count." she whispered after a while.

Mr. Amano looked between the two silent teens.

"Seven, the last one being when you showed up." Gingka said quietly.

Madoka started crying again, her eyes still on Gingka, who shifted his weight uncomfortably, trying to apologize to the brunette with his eyes.

"You can go now." Mr. Amano said, noticing the redhead's uneasiness. "I have to talk to Madoka."

Gingka nodded and got up, leading the way to the front door.

Mr. Amano unlocked the door, and Gingka stepped into the darkness outside.

"When would be the best time to speak with your father, if I need to?" Mr. Amano asked as Gingka started to walk down the sidewalk.

The redhead turned back, thinking. "Probably the weekends, in the afternoon. He's really busy planning tournaments during the weekdays, and I rarely see him then."

"Alright. I might call on him sometime tomorrow." Mr. Amano said, closing the B-Pit door.

Gingka turned and strode for home, glad that his interview with Madoka's father was over, but feeling like he hadn't really gotten anywhere with the older man. He suddenly realized that it was quite late, and his father was probably waiting for him to get home. This thought spurred him on, and he arrived at his house out of breath.

"So, how did it go?" Ryo asked.

"I'm not sure. Madoka got in trouble again, and I feel like I just talked myself in a big circle." Gingka replied. "Her dad said he might come over to talk to you tomorrow."

"Alright." Ryo replied, noting the stress on his son's face.

The next morning, Gingka left early, feeling like he needed to get away from everyone and go battle someone. He found Kenta and Kyoya at the Bey Park, along with Hikaru, who seemed to be doing some leftover work.

The Pegasus wielder plunged himself into the battles, much to the excitement of his friends, who hadn't seen him so fired up about battling in weeks. By noon, he had completely forgotten about everything except for the battle in front of him. He and Kenta were squaring off against Kyoya and Hikaru, who had been persuaded to come join them despite her workload and mild aversion to battling.

The group was so deep into the battle that they didn't notice Ryo arrive with Mr. Amano and Madoka.

"Gingka! Could you come here for a second?" Ryo called.

"Get him, Pegasus!"

"Roar, Leone!"

Gingka was too occupied in a head-on clash with Kyoya to hear his father calling.

"He's not listening." Mr. Amano said, sounding a bit disappointed.

"He's just like that. When he gets that deep into a battle, nobody can get his attention until he's finished." Ryo chuckled. "It's actually a good thing, since I haven't seen him this into a battle for a long time."

An explosion suddenly filled the air.

"Yeah! We did it!" Gingka and Kenta cheered, catching their beys and high-fiving.

"Gingka!" Ryo called.

"Huh?" the redhead turned and spotted the group.

"Come here for a second." Ryo said.

"Coming!" Gingka replied, jumping down from the raised stadium and striding over, bey in hand.

"You seem to have left quite an impression on Mr. Amano." Ryo said once his son reached them.

"A good one, I hope." Gingka said, suddenly becoming nervous, then relaxing as Madoka winked at him.

"Yesterday you showed me that you were different. I want to give you the opportunity, if you'll take it, to prove to me that I can trust you." Mr. Amano said.

Gingka looked confused for a second. Suddenly, his eyes widened as he realized what those words meant.

Mr. Amano smiled at the teen's change in expression.

"Does that mean-?"

"I want you to be a protector for Madoka when she's not around me. If you can prove to me that I can trust you while you're doing that, then you will be allowed to date her, if she will have you as her boyfriend." Mr. Amano said. "Starting now."

Gingka grinned. "I can do that!" he exclaimed.

Madoka held out a hand. "Pegasus, now. It hasn't been repaired in nearly a month." she said.

Gingka sweatdropped and handed the brunette his bey. "I was going to battle Kyoya again, but okay." he chuckled.

Suddenly, Madoka rushed to the redhead and enveloped him in a hug. Gingka tensed slightly at this, glancing at her father, then cautiously placed his arms around her shoulders for a few seconds before letting go as she pulled out of the hug.

"Come on, I'll let you help this time." Madoka said happily, grabbing Gingka's hand and starting to run off.

"Whoa! Hang on a second!" Gingka said, stumbling along after her.


End file.
